Dynamic Warm Up Game: blend technique, fitness and injury prevention in 10 minutes
Looking for a fun way to add variety to your warm up? Try this dynamic warm up from Fit2Finish. Keep players moving with the ball. Condition their dribble, introduce them to plyometrics, and work on their technique, timing and field sense, all in a small space. Here’s the video on the Fit2Finish Youtube channel. Be […]
New book from Fit2Finish, competitive fitness without the injuries. Look inside…
Fit2Finish: Keeping Your Soccer Players in the Game Introduction: Fit for the Game Kids and Fitness: What Does the Game Require? Sport Anatomy and Physiology: What Makes the Body Work Fitness Prescription for Sports: Meeting the Demands Fitting Fitness into the Practice Plan Flexibility, Stretching and Recovery Fueling the Athlete for Performance Beating Injuries to Keep […]
School Soccer + Club Soccer May Spell Too Much: Beat Overtraining Injuries with the 6+ Program
When my daughter’s team hit the fields for the spring season tune up, I was happily surprised by the healthy depth of their roster. I keep track of this stuff, as a mom and a sports medicine professional keeping a close eye on the injury tally. “Just wait,” her coach cautioned, “spring is overlap season. […]
Taking Action Against Concussions: 8 Things You Can Do with Your Team Right Now
Concussions are a terribly important issue in sports today. You’ll get no argument from me. I came into the conversation early digging up the facts and shaking out the recommendations. Read my investigations here: Concussions: Not Just a Bump on the Head Concussions: What Parents, Coaches and Players Can Do The conclusions: We need to […]
Three strategies to help avoid soccer injuries: Safety, Gear, Move
It’s one of the great moments in a new soccer career: getting the first pair of cleats. Then you send them out onto the pitch and the little running feet in the scrum of kids are a veritable rainbow of color. It doesn’t take long until somebody’s laces come untied. Then someone else. Before you […]
Could Kyah Simon’s ACL Tear Have Been Prevented?
Another one bites the dust. This time it’s Kyah Simon, 22-year-old Australian striker and Boston Breakers star, who tore her ACL just minutes after coming on for the Matildas in their friendly against the U.S. Women’s National Team on October 20. This one deserves special attention because she had just entered the contest. Some will ask, was […]
Pain AND Gain: On the Edge of Injury AND Glory
I got to spend my mornings last week with the First Ladies of soccer, the Washington Spirit. I have never seen that kind of soccer quite so up close and personal. These women are phenomenal. Just standing by, I can hardly believe the power and accuracy and quickness of their ball drills and their small-sided […]
The Key to Successful ACL Injury Prevention
Looking at the numbers of ACL tears and “revisions” – that’s a nice way to say re-tears – it is very clear this an injury we want to prevent. At all costs. The question is, can we? Sportsmetrics (Hewett in Ohio) and the PEP program (Santa Monica, CA) say YES. These groups have done solid […]
ACL Recovery and Return to Sport
If you are 4-6 months post ACL surgery and your doctor tells you it’s okay to return to play ask him/her this: “how do you know I am ready?” According to Dr. Tim Hewett, 85% of the doctors making this call are using no clinical data to make the decision. That is, they are looking […]
Dear Abby, when you have a concussion, please take a seat on the sidelines
I read in Washington Post columnist Steve Goff’s recap of the Spirit vs Flash 1-1 tie that Abby Wambach “remained in the match and assisted on her team’s 85th minute goal. But at the final whistle fell to her knees and later required medical attention.” This in light of Spirit Goalkeeper, Ashlyn Harris’ comments: “She got […]